Tag: life

The Great Interrupter

I told myself earlier this month that I would write a new post about my journey to landing an opportunity of a lifetime. Weeks passed and though it never left my mind, I didn’t allow myself to slow down enough to get my thoughts together to be able to share the magnitude of what happened; especially in a year that has been nothing less than tragic. I promise that I’ll get to that story but today I had to stop everything to share the most simplest moment that happened to me just this morning.

Like many of you, I have been hit hard this week. The news of Jacob Blake… followed by the teen vigilante shooting… while watching the repeated history displayed at the March on Washington… and the looming frustration of have no arrests in the case of Breonna Taylor… and then news that Chadwick Boseman dies at age 42. THE Black Panther. Wakanda Forever. Gone. It was too much. So this morning I purposed myself to take control of the mood that I wanted to set for the day. I decided to set aside hours of no television and no social media. Instead, I would light candles, have breakfast, fold clothes and maybe I would break out one of the books I’ve been trying to read for over a year.

Continue reading “The Great Interrupter” →
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You Could Have Been An Ant

Writing this blog has been more about accountability and discipline than anything else. I write as though I have thousands of followers waiting to read what I have to say. Or as if  I  have an editor waiting for me to meet a deadline that could potentially put me at risk of losing my job if I don’t get it in on time. It’s a fight to keep this type of mind set because the other part of me wants to revert back to the reason I quit the last time. Who’s checking for it really? I have a laundry list of things that I need to prioritize that actually do have repercussions… bill paying, grocery orders, appointment scheduling… the list goes on. But writing makes me happy. It brings me closer to God and quite frankly it’s the one thing that I do just because I want to. The beauty of being under the radar is that you have no outside influence on what you should write. It’s only what you want to say and how God leads you to say it.

This week’s entry is all about my new favorite podcast “The Same Room” featuring Charlamagne Tha God and Harmony Samuels in episode 2 titled “God’s Purpose For You.” I couldn’t summarize all the gems in this episode if I tried but I’ll do my best to speak on just a few of them that sparked a fire in me in hopes that it will encourage you to check out the full episode and potentially share it with others. Continue reading “You Could Have Been An Ant” →

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RESTART

restart I love how God uses everyday, nominal occurrences to grab my attention. Let me paint the picture for you. I’m sitting at my writing desk wrapping up Sunday online service when that annoying pop up banner appears with the same pesky alert that reads something like “Update available. Do you want to restart your computer?” The options read: RESTART or LATER. For months, I’ve hit the LATER button continuously irritated that it just won’t go away!  It’s not that I don’t think the updates are necessary. I don’t have a particular issue with updating my computer; however, what I do have an issue with is how long it usually takes to complete. When I take time out to sit at my computer to do anything I want to do it now. I don’t think about completing the updates any other time. It’s only when I get that pesky pop up that I think, “I should really do that but I don’t have time.”

I literally had the cursor hovering above the LATER button when I stopped dead in my tracks. Images flooded my mind of my computer taking forever to load, or the video buffering while I’m trying to watch them, or site freezing in the midst of me scrolling. Then the question arises, “Why do you think you have so many challenges when you’re trying to complete a task on your computer? Should you just replace the entire computer? Is it trash or could it have anything to do with those pesky little updates that you’ve continued to ignore over the past few months?”……This is where the moment of sheer stupidity and revelation mix. Continue reading “RESTART” →

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Version 3.3

I’m sitting here in the wee hours of the morning of my birthday reflecting on my first 33 years of life. It’s crazy ya’ll! I’m going to try to put it into words so bare with me please. Many times, on our birthdays, we reflect only on our past year and give ourselves a “grade” on how well we did since the last one.

Did I accomplish all that I planned?

Am I happy with where I am at this age?

How many more years do I have until I reach “that” age?

birthdayWell, if I were to be completely honest I’d say if I measured my happiness on just those questions, it wouldn’t be the happiest of birthdays. Real talk! I know the saying “just be thankful to be alive” but I’ve always been the hardest on myself and I never just wanted to be alive… I wanted to live! Live to fullest! Yes, I haven’t done bad for myself and each year I get better but I still feel like I could be doing soooo much more! I have a feeling I’m not the only one.

So today, after I asked myself those three questions and began feeling a little bummed, I heard God say loud and clear “Think about all 33 years. Don’t start from the last one.” So I did and here’s what came out of my time of reflection: Continue reading “Version 3.3” →

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Timetables

Ephesians 2:10
“For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].”
timetableWhen you think of some of your most prized possessions what comes first to mind? In the materialistic world we live in, it’s so easy to list out all the tangible things that we couldn’t live without. They don’t even have to be costly things just something that you would hate to have taken from you. Here’s what I’m willing to bet. Many of your lists would not include “time.” Time is such a fragile part of life. It can be taken away in an instance without any warning but we take it for granted far too often.

Continue reading “Timetables” →

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My Hand Is God’s Hand

Let me paint the picture for you. Imagine being a mother or father of a child that you tried desperately to conceive and them being held by the hands of a killer. A rifle placed at their temple and being told to denounce your faith for the sake of keeping your baby alive. Imagine the amount of confidence that a parent must have in their faith to be able to confess their faith in that situation? Can you honestly say that you could do it? Would you even give it a thought? If I’m going to remain transparent with you, I’m not sure I could. Real talk. Having that level of awareness of where I am increased my respect for those that are presently faced with that challenge and die daily based on their decision.

Continue reading “My Hand Is God’s Hand” →

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Real Comfort Food

sunset-straight-road-1920x1080In the perfect world, I would get up every morning excited about the day that lies ahead, especially on Tuesday when it’s time to release my blog post. The truth is, although I’m grateful for every day that God blesses me with, I’m not always all that thrilled about what the day brings. For the past few weeks, I’ve had quite a few down moments. Moments when I wish I was under an invisible cloak so that I wouldn’t have to deal with anyone or anything until I could get it together. Of course, that wish never came true and when I thought I was about to completely lose it, I retreated to the Word. It’s a shame to admit that much of what I was going through was because I was focusing on all the things that were not going in my favor. Instead of praying, I was worrying… and worrying a lot. Eventually I stilled my mind long enough to disappear into the pages that redefine the meaning of comfort food. Continue reading “Real Comfort Food” →

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When I Was 7… Yesterday

1 Cor. 13:11 “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.”

Number 7I never knew about her earlier life. I knew of her activism, her poems, and her infinite wisdom but yesterday was my first glance into young Maya Angelou. That is — 7 year old Maya Angelou. In one of her many interviews with Oprah Winfrey, she spoke of being raped at age 7. A few days after being released from jail, the man she accused was found dead. It was the end of his life and the end of her voice – for several years. Her 7 year old mind led her to believe that her voice was the cause of the man’s death and that if she continued to speak then more people would die. Where did she get that from? Who did she consult about those thoughts?… No one. Continue reading “When I Was 7… Yesterday” →

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Big Picture, Small Frame

Everyday I ask God to show me what my focus should be on for the day. Who’s going to need my attention? I pray that my eyes and ears are alert to hear from Him and distinguish His voice from all others. I ask that I decrease and that Holy Spirit increases so that I don’t block anything that He has planned for the day. I must admit, sometimes I get ahead of myself and I start to measure who I am against who I know I want to be. I see the big picture all the time! It’s very difficult for me to focus on each step during the process. There’s nothing wrong with big picture thinking as long as you don’t neglect the many, many steps in between. Continue reading “Big Picture, Small Frame” →

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IN THE MIDDLE – DANCE OFF!

I’ve been so looking forward to this post! God gave me this idea on my ride to church a few weeks ago and since I write my blogs in advance, I had to wait to share. It’s so out of the box for me but I love it. Let me first let you in on a little tidbit to put everything in perspective. Last year was the MOST challenging, heart wrenching, loneliest year of my life. REAL TALK! I can admit that I was in a very dark place for months. I just wanted time to stand still to give myself time to recoup, figure things out, and just be for a minute. Life was carrying on and I was hanging on to the bumper by a string. I had some very trying days that tested my faith. I had many angry days at God. I was sad much more than I was happy. Simply put, I was just getting by. I can’t say that every day I made a decision to praise God but I know for a fact that the times that I did, even in the midst of my pain, is the reason I’m in one of the happiest places of my life this year! No, my life is not perfect. Yes, there are things that still need fixing but my perspective has changed. I have renewed hope. I have a clearer vision and most importantly I have a more intimate relationship with God BECAUSE of what I went through. Continue reading “IN THE MIDDLE – DANCE OFF!” →

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